Today stablecoin issuer Paxos said it acquired Finnish e-money institution Membrane Finance, the issuer of EURe. The deal gives Paxos a licensed e-money institution (EMI) enabling access to all EU states, subject to regulatory approval.

Paxos and its affiliates are already regulated in New York, Abu Dhabi and Singapore. Under Europe’s MiCA regulations crypto legislation, registration in one state is passported to all other member states.

Paxos is the issuer of the PayPal stablecoin (PYUSD) and its own Paxos dollar (USDP). Its UAE affiliate has issued a yield bearing stablecoin. And in Singapore it recently launched the Global Dollar Network, which will share interest revenues on the USDG stablecoin with distribution partners.

“Stablecoins offer a global solution to challenges that countless people and companies feel when it comes to money movement and payments. Stablecoins are becoming increasingly more prevalent throughout the market as more use cases emerge for everyday users, “ said Walter Hessert, Head of Strategy at Paxos.

 

“With Membrane, we expect to extend our reach to EU customers looking to benefit from stablecoins.”

Stablecoins in the EU

In terms of other stablecoin players, Circle historically had a strong presence in Europe (Ireland). It chose France as its base for MiCAR, directly registering as an EMI.

MiCA regulations require a high proportion of reserves to be held at banks – 30% for smaller stablecoins and 60% for significant ones. Tether claims this is the reason it has not registered in the EU. However, so far it has chosen to remain offshore, avoiding jurisdictions that require it to be regulated. A large part of Tether’s stablecoin balance is on TRON, a blockchain that’s popular in Africa.

Meanwhile, MiCAR also has some quite complicated rules limiting the scale of foreign currency stablecoins in the EU. However, this is widely misunderstood, so we previously provided a deep dive on the topic.

Bank issued stablecoins are also explored as part of our Research report on tokenized deposits and DLT payments.

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A new asset and wealth management survey by PwC appears to show differences in appetite between asset managers and the institutional investors that they serve. That particularly relates to digital assets and tokenization.

One of PwC’s questions explored which sectors institutional investors are interested in when it comes to tokenization. The biggest gap was money market funds, despite the topic grabbing plenty of press headlines. While 40% of institutional investors hold or plan to hold tokenized money market funds, only 24% of asset managers offer or intend to offer them.

In two other areas, asset managers may have overestimated investor interest: the tokenization of hedge funds and private debt. Asset managers consider private debt as a desirable area (31%) for tokenization, but it looks like there’s less interest from investors (24%). Both asset managers and investors agreed that the most attractive sector for tokenization is private equity.

Another of PwC’s questions was less clear cut because of different time frames. It asked asset and wealth managers which digital assets were in the highest demand in the past 12 months. Whereas it asked investors which digital assets they are most interested in over the next two to three years.

Crypto dominates

Asset managers said crypto (57%) was slightly ahead of investing companies in the sector (54%), with security tokens in fourth place at 41%. Looking forward, investors are far more interested in crypto (62%) compared to any other type of digital asset. Investments in digital asset companies came second at 46%, with security tokens in sixth spot at 25%.

With some surveys, the devil is in the detail, such as who the pollster classifies as an institutional investor? If a large proportion are crypto specialists, then it can bias the results. PwC said that 264 asset managers took part and 257 investors. More than half managed assets of over $10 billion.

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Dinarian Note: Let me make one thing clear upfront: this is not financial advice, nor am I suggesting anyone invest in Bitcoin. My point here is purely observational, based on historical patterns in the cryptocurrency market.

 

If history is any guide, Bitcoin often experiences a euphoric blow-off top at the end of its market cycle—a dramatic surge in price before a sharp decline. This event typically marks the beginning of altseason, a period where alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins) experience significant growth and attract substantial market attention.

 

To be transparent, I do not own Bitcoin and have no plans to ever own it. My focus and interest lie in the broader blockchain ecosystem and altcoins that present unique utility, innovation, or potential. For me, Bitcoin is just one piece of the puzzle in a much larger, more diverse crypto landscape where INSANE profits await!

 

As always, tread carefully and make informed decisions when navigating this volatile yet exciting space. Namasté 🙏 The Dinarian 

Bitcoin (BTC) is on a bull market after breaking out of its all-time high of $73,800, fuelling market euphoria. Historically, this “euphoric phase” will last for a few months before making a new top and reversing back down.

Ki Young Ju, founder and CEO of CryptoQuant, greeted Bitcoin’s euphoria and warned investors about the “euphoric phase” roadmap. In particular, the crypto executive and analyst highlighted that “euphoria” usually lasts three to 12 months, except for 2021’s cycle.

According to him, euphoria started two weeks ago, and 99.3% of all BTC addresses are in profit right now.

Should traders short BTC at “Bitcoin euphoria”?

Interestingly, however, Bitcoin already experienced euphoria during March’s breakout, with the three-to-twelve-month range potentially counting from there, similar to what happened in 2013-2014.

“Shorting [BTC] now,” Ki Young Ju said, “could be either catching the top—or shorting at the bottom of a parabolic bull run.”

Usually, shorting BTC during the start of “Euphoria” has proven to be a bad decision. Yet, March’s activity and the following consolidation phase make it uncertain whether we are starting or ending Bitcoin’s euphoric phase.

Most analysts seem to agree that now is not a good time to short Bitcoin, foreseeing more upside potential. As Finbold reported, an analyst believes we are starting “the biggest crypto bull run ever.” 

In the meantime, other reports forecast Bitcoin to reach $138,000 just before a major correction takes place. Notably, this is a similar target of a previously covered exit strategy from a prominent trading expert.

Bitcoin (BTC) price analysis

As of this writing, Bitcoin is trading slightly below the $92,000 mark, up nearly 118% year-to-date. BTC started 2024 at $42,210, making an impressive run up to $73,800 in March, breaking out of 2021’s all-time high of $69,000.

After this euphoric phase, with over 99% addresses in profit, Bitcoin entered a seven-month downtrend that ended in early November. As things developed, Donald Trump’s victory ignited the current euphoria, breaking out of the downtrend and setting the path forward.

                              Bitcoin (BTC) year-to-date price analysis. Source: Finbold

Now, traders and investors bet on whether Bitcoin will continue its rally, consolidate for a while, or reverse entirely. Given the cryptocurrency market’s inherent volatility and unpredictability, speculators must understand and manage the risks accordingly, moving with caution.

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